A DYING BUSINESS; EXCLUSIVE Bells tolling for funeral directors as deaths fall.IT WAS once said there was nothing more certain in life than death and taxes. But the famous old saying seems to have come unstuck in the Midlands with the credit crunch Credit Crunch An economic condition whereby investment capital is difficult to obtain. Banks and investors become weary of lending funds to corporations thereby driving up the price of debt products for borrowers. biting in Bit´ing in´ 1. (Etching.) The process of corroding or eating into metallic plates, by means of an acid. See Etch. the most unlikely of industries. Funeral directors across the region say they are struggling to cope with a combination of economic woes and a sharp drop in the regional death rate. David Crampton Crampton may refer to:
He said: "It may sound strange but the truth is we are seeing the effects of the credit crunch in the industry at the moment and I think it is only going to get worse as more and more people tighten their belts. "All funerals cost money and people have a choice of what type of funeral they want for their loved ones loved ones npl → seres mpl queridos loved ones npl → proches mpl et amis chers loved ones love npl , so it can be as simple or as expensive as they like. "But more and more people are asking themselves do they buy an expensive cofYn, or do they use the money to put food on the table and fuel in the car? "Our proYts are being hit because of customers choosing cheaper cofYns at a time when our margins are slimmer already because of the greatly reduced number of funerals. "So clearly the majority of people are going for the cheaper option. "It's just something we are all going to have do our best to deal with." According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. latest statistics from the Registrar General The Registrar General is the Government official responsible for the registration of births, deaths and marriages in England and Wales. There are similar officials in Scotland and Northern Ireland, so the Registrar General is often called the Registrar General for England and Wales , the death rate in Birmingham alone has plummeted from 13,000 per year in 1990 to 10,000 in 2007. In the same time, the number of private funeral Yrms in the city is estimated to have dropped from more than 20 to less than six. There was also a 50 per cent reduction in the death rate last month nationwide - and some crematoriums in the Midlands were empty for days at a time. Terry Bastock, President of the Birmingham Funeral Directors Guild guild Association of craftsmen or merchants formed for mutual aid and for the advancement of their professional interests. Guilds flourished in Europe between the 11th and 16th century and were of two types: merchant guilds, including all the merchants of a particular town , said: "It's an indisputable fact that the death rate is plummeting. "There has been a tremendous fall-off in recent years and the reasons for that are complicated. "But obviously there is no doubt that people are living longer than ever before, thanks to advances in medicine. And the care for people in their elderly years has improved immeasurably im·meas·ur·a·ble adj. 1. Impossible to measure. See Synonyms at incalculable. 2. Vast; limitless. im·meas as well. "There is no doubt the dropoff has hurt the business in the region. "But the industry will come through the problems like it always does because even though less people are dying each year, we can be sure we'll see everyone at some stage in the future." adam.aspinall@sundaymercury.net CAPTION(S): STRUGGLE: It's a difficult time to be in the funeral business. Below: some of the customised coffins for sale. |
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